Scalp conditioning cabinet



Jan. 11, 1949. c. FIELDS SCALP CONDITIONING CABINET 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 18, 1946 .ZTFETIZ 27.? CLIFFORD FIELDS.

Jan. 11, 1949.

.Filed Dec. 18, 1946 C. FIELDS SCALP CONDITIONING CABINET 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 by Z/zI m Egg-5.

CLIFFORD FIELDS.

Patented Jan. 11, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SCALP CONDITIONING CABINET Clifford Fields, Mount Vernon, Ill.

Application December 18, 1946, Serial No. 717,039

This invention relates to a device which is especially adapted for treating the human scalp to invigorate the growth of hair thereon.

Specifically, the invention deals with a hair and scalp-conditioning cabinet equipped with a steam generator and a ray-emitting lamp for treating the hair and scalp.

According to this invention a cabinet constructed of metal, wood, or any suitable structural material, is arranged with front, rear, side, and bottom walls together with an open top. A cover is provided for the open top. The front wall is apertured for receivin a human head. An ovalshaped aperture is preferred, A head rest, preferably padded or cushioned, is provided at the bottom of the aperture. A sliding door is mounted on the front face of the cabinet to overlie the upper portion of the aperture for resting on the forehead of a patient to adapt the aperture to a snug fit around the patients head. The sliding door and the aperture-defining portion of the cabinet are each padded or cushioned to protect the patients head and to provide a comfortable fitting arrangement for the head of the patient.

A rack, composed of spaced parallel rods, spans the interior of the cabinet at a level beneath the aperture. The rack is preferably inclined downwardly from the front to the rear wall of the cabinet. The rear wall is equipped with a receptacle for a lamp such as an infrared, ultra-violet, or the like ray-emitting device. The lamp is mounted at a level above the rack so that its rays will be concentrated on the scalp of a patients head in the cabinet. The steam generator is mounted in the bottom of the cabinet beneath the rack and fills the entire cabinet with steam. In order to protect the patients forehead against steam condensate droplets, a baflle is preferably mounted in the cabinet over the head of the patient.

A temperature regulator is provided for both the lamp and the steam generator to control the temperature of the interior of the cabinet.

A feature of the invention resides in the provision of a treating device for the entire scalp without subjecting the face of the patient to the treating zone.

A further feature of the invention resides in the provision of a scalp-conditioning cabinet which steams the entire scalp of the patient while the patient reclines in a comfortable posi-- tion and is protected from the steam atmosphere except at the scalp area.

. An object of the invention is to provide a 5 Claims. (Cl. 128375) 2 treating cabinet for the scalp and hair which simultaneously subjects the scalp and hair to the action of steam and light rays.

A further object of the invention is to provide a treating cabinet having an aperture for receiving a portion of a human body arranged to seal off the remaining portion of the body from the cabinet and equipped with means for creating a desired treating atmosphere in the cabinet.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a treating cabinet for a portion of a human body without subjecting any other portion of the body to the influence of the treating atmosphere.

A specific object of the invention is to provide a scalp and hair conditioner with a vapordiffusing rack adapted to support the hair.

A further specific object of the invention is to provide a scalp-conditioner cabinet havin a steam generator and a ray-emitting lamp controlled by a temperature regulator to maintain predetermined temperature conditions cabinet.

Other and further objects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the annexed sheet of drawings which, by way of a preferred example only, illustrates one embodiment of the invention.

On the drawings:

Figure l is a side elevational view, with parts broken away and shown in vertical cross section, of a scalp-conditioning cabinet according to this invention and illustrating the manner in which the cabinet is used to treat the scalp and hair of a patient.

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the cabinet of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the rack in the cabinet.

Figure 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view, with parts in elevation, taken along the line IV-IV of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary end elevational view taken along the line VV of Figure 3.

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary transverse cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of Figure 2.

Figure 7 is a transverse horizontal cross-sectional view taken along the line VIIVII of Figure 2.

As shown on the drawings:

In Figure 1 the reference numeral 10 designates generally the scalp-conditioning cabinet of this invention arranged to receive the hair H and in the scalp portion S of the head of a patient P reclining on a table T. The cabinet I is on rollers II and can be conveniently moved to a desired treating location, for example, adjacent a barber chair.

As best shown in Figures 1, 2, 4, and 7 the cabinet ill has an open top, a front wall Illa, a rear wall lllb, side walls lilo, H30, and a bottom lfld. The open top is closed by a cover l2 which, as shown in Figure l, is hingedly connected to the upper end of the rear wall lllb by hinges such as' An oval-shaped aperture I4 is provided in the front wall iila at a level near the upper end. of the cabinet. The aperture [4 has the major axis thereof extending verticall and is sized to accommodate a human head therein. A head rest.

15 is secured to the front wall Illa and projects forwardly therefrom at the lower part of the aperture M. This head rest I5 is provided with a concave portion 55a in the upper face thereof for fitting around the back of the patients head. A soft pad, such as a rubber cushion It, covers the head rest it. A door ll is slidably mounted on the front face of the front wall fllatin vertical channels provided by Z-strip's l8, 58 secured to the-front face of the front wall. As best shown in Figure 6, each strip [8 has a leg IBCL secured to the wall lilo, a web lBb extending outwardly from the wall lilo, and an inturned leg or flange 1'80 overlying the door ll. A- rubber gasket is is preferably interposed between the door I! and the front wall Mia to sealingly engage the front wall. The gasket I9 is secured to the door iii and prevents leakage of steam, as will behereinafter more fully described, between the door and cabinet wall. In additionthe gasket I9 is useful in holding the door ill at a desired level; since the gasket material rubs on the cabinet wall. This rubbing action is sufficient to prevent the door from falling, and the weight of the door'is therefore not borne on the forehead of the patient.

The door ll, as best shown in. Figure 2, has a recessed bottom edge Ha extending around the upper portion of the aperture M. This recessed portion i'la, as shown in Figure l, is lined with soft pad. or rubber cover 26 to rest on the forehead of the patient. As therein shown, the back of the patients head rests on the pad [6 Of'the headrest 55, while the scalp portion Sof the head projects into the interior of. the cabinet. The door l-l is lowered to close whatever portion of theaperture I l that is exposed above the patients head. The recess l'la of the door fits around the upper portion of the patients head and seals-01f the aperture.

An inclined balile 2!, shown in Figures 1, 2; and

Illa at the top thereof and projects into the cabinet in spaced overlying relation to the patients head. The bafile 25 has an upturned lipor flange 2m along the lower free end thereof to define a trough for directing condensate on the bafileto the side edges thereof which, as shown in Figure 2, extends well beyond the sides of the aperture I4. The baflle 2i extendsinwardly into the cabinet beyond the scalp S of the patient, and any condensate collected thereon or dripping from the cover 12 will not fall on the. patients head, but will be drained to the end of the baflie beyond the patients head.

The rear wall Nib of the cabinet, as shown 'in Figure l, has an apertureZZ therein opposite the aperture Mof the front wall. Acasingfimounted on the rear wall lflb provides a lamp chamber 24 communicating with the aperture 22 and receiving a ray-emitting lamp 25. The lamp, as illustrated in Figure 2, is arranged to direct its rays toward the aperture M for treating the scalp S of a patients head projecting through the aperture. The casing 23 is used so that the overall dimensions of the cabinet N] can be maintained at the minimum. Alternatively, of course, the lamp 25 could be directly mounted in a'cabinet of larger dimensions,

A rack 26, shown in Figures 1, 3, and 4, spans the interior of the cabinet beneath the aperture M. The rack 26 includes a rectangular metal frame band 21 removably resting on brackets 28 on the front and rear walls of the cabinet. The band 21 has spaced open-topped recesses 21a, best shown in Figure 5, along the side legs thereof and glass tubes 29 are removably mounted in these recesses. The tubes extend across the width of the: cabinet between the side wallslllc, lllcand are in spaced parallel relation with the front and rear walls Illa-and lilb. While glass'tubes are preferred, it should be understood that any type of rod or tube could be-used. The tubes are removable from the rackand the rack. is removable from the cabinet.

The rack 26 is inclined, as shown in Figures 1 and 4,. and slopes downwardly from the front wall beneath the head aperture toa lower level at. the rear wall. As'shownin Figure. 1, the hair of the. patient rests on: the tubes of the rack, and can be spread-loosely on these'tubes.

.lln-a addition. to providing a supportfor' the hair of the patient, the tubes: serve the dual function inch: in diameter and are placed about threeeighths of aniinch apart.

The entire rack 26 can be. easily removed. out of the: open top: of the cabinet, orindividualtubes' can be removed through: the open top of"the:cab-- inet out of the frame band 21.

A sloping false bottom 3fl is mounted in the cabinet abovethebottom ifld thereof. Thisfa' lse bottom. 38: slopes to admin valve-'tl mounted an aside wall; tile. The drain valve can be opened at: intervals to remove condensate from the cabinet.

A steam generator 32: ismount'ed on the'false b'ottom tfl: andincludes an open--topped pan 33, a pair ofv electrodes ii l in the pannear the bottom thereof, a water supply tube 35: communicating with. the interior of the. pan. 3 3 at the bottom thereof, and with anopen-topped feed-pan 36 onthe outside of the cabinet onfithe side wall tile; A-Water'bottle 31 is mounted in inverted position on. the outside of. the cabinet in a retainer't'aandhas its open mouths-Elwin. the pan 36 at a. level: to control the. level of water in. the part 33 of the steam generator. Water is automatically fed from the bottle 37 to the. pan Elli-and maintained? at aidesi'redl level in thepan. The electrodes heat the water'in the pan 33 to generate steam; and he steam rises through the rack 26, being defiected by the tubes to circulatearound the'hair' and scalp: of the. patient. The entire interiorof the; cabinetisrfiooded withl steam.

As shown in. Figure 4, the-lamp 2 5: and steam" generator'SZ' can be selectively: or simultaneously operated, and the temperature of't'he interior of the cabinet can be maintained as desired by the setting: of a thermostat switch- 4'0; 'lht switch is mounted in the front wall |0a of the cabinet. To energize the lamp 25 and the electrodes 34, a socket plug 4| is mounted in the rear wall |0b of the cabinet beneath the false bottom 30. A wire 42 extends from one post of the plug 4| to the lamp 25 and a switch 43 on the rear wall of the cabinet lUb selectively controls current flow through this wire 42. A second wire 44 extends from the lamp 25 through the space between the bottom id and the false bottom 30 and to the switch 40. Another wire 45 extends from the switch to the other post of the plug 4|. When the switches 40 and 43 are closed, the lamp 25 will be energized.

One electrode 34 of the steam generator is connected to a post of the plug 4| by a wire 46, and the other electrode of the steam generator is connected to the wire 44 through a wire 41 hav ing a switch 48 controlling flow therethrough. When the switches 48 and 40 are closed, current will flow through the wires 46, 41, 44 and 45 to energize the electrodes, thereby heating water in the pan 33 and generating steam. The switches 43 and 48 selectively control the lamp and the steam generator and either one or both of these units can be energized from the plug 4|. The thermostat switch 40 can be set from outside of the cabinet to de-energize the lamp and/or steam generator whenever temperature in the cabinet reaches the selected temperature. This arrangement gives automatic control for both heating units in the cabinet.

If desired, a heating lamp, such as an infrared ray lamp, can be replaced with an ultra-violet ray lamp, or other ray device.

From the above descriptions it will be understood that the invention provides a treating device especially adapted for invigorating the scalp of a human head. The device steams the entire scalp area and hair of a human head without subjecting other parts of the body to the treating atmosphere. At the same time, rays from a treating lamp are directed on the scalp. Medication can be applied to the scalp before treatment in the cabinet. The open top of the cabinet affords easy access to arrange the hair on the defiector, and to make proper adjustments.

It will, of course, be understood that various details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention and it is, therefore, not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A treating device comprising a cabinet having a head-receiving aperture, a rack spanning the cabinet interior below said aperture and adapted to support hair thereon, a steam generator in the cabinet beneath the rack to supply steam to the rack for flooding the cabinet, a rayemitting lamp communicating with the cabinet above the rack to direct rays on the head of the patient, and a thermostat control device for the lamp and the steam generator to de-energize the same when the cabinet temperature reaches a preset degree.

2. A scalp-treating cabinet comprising an opentopped box having an apertured front wall intermediate the top and bottom thereof, a cover for the open top of the box, a door slidable on said wall of the box for partially covering said aperture to vary the effective size thereof, a rack spanning the interior of the box beneath the aperture and inclined downwardly from the apertured wall, said rack having spaced hair-supporting members therein, a steam generator in the bottom of the box beneath said rack, and a rayemitting lamp communicating with the box above said rack and arranged to direct rays toward the aperture in said wall of the box.

3. A scalp-conditioning cabinet comprising a cabinet having front, rear, side, and bottom walls together with an open top, a cover on said cabinet for selectively closing said open top thereof, said front wall of the cabinet having an ovalshaped opening therethrough intermediate the top and bottom thereof and sized for receiving a human head, a head rest on the front wall of the cabinet at the lower portion of said aperture, a door slidable on the front wall of the cabinet over the upper portion of said aperture, said head rest and said door being covered with soft material for respectively engaging the forehead and back portion of the head of a patient, an inclined bathe in said cabinet overlying the space occupied by the head of a patient in said cabinet, a rack composed of spaced rods spanning said cabinet at a level therein beneath said aperture, and a steam generator in the bottom of said cabinet.

4. A scalp-conditioning cabinet comprising an open-topped cabinet having an apertured front wall adapted to receive a human head therein, a head rest on said front wall surrounding the lower portion of the aperture, a door slidable on said front wall for partially covering the upper portion of said aperture, a baflle in said cabinet extending inwardly from said front wall above said aperture and projecting into the cabinet beyond the space occupied by the head of a patient projecting through said aperture, a plurality of spaced parallel rods spanning the cabinet at a level beneath said aperture, said rods extending in parallel relation with the front wall of the cabinet, and a steam generator in the cabinet beneath said rod.

5. A scalp-conditioning cabinet which comprises an open-topped cabinet having a head-receiving aperture in the front wall thereof, a frame band removably supported in said cabinet in inclined relation beneath the aperture in said front wall of the cabinet, said frame band having sides with open-topped recesses therein, glass tubes removably supported in said recesses and extending across the interior of the cabinet in spaced parallel relation with the front wall, and a steam generator in the bottom of the cabinet beneath said tubes arranged to circulate steam to flood the entire interior of the cabinet.

CLIFFORD FIELDS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 921,476 Soles May 11, 1909 2,365,243 Boren Dec. 19, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number I Country Date 3,345 Great Britain Feb. 10, 1904 10,889 Great Britain Ma 12, 1898 

